The Real Deal New York

How global political turmoil could impact NYC real estate

Over one turbulent weekend in November, the Ritz-Carlton in Riyadh was converted into the world’s most luxurious prison. At the behest of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, the government rounded up some of the kingdom’s most prominent businessmen and members of the royal family. Among the detained was Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, Saudi Arabia’s richest man and a sizable investor in Manhattan’s Plaza hotel.

The events in Riyadh came at the tail end of what has been a dramatic year in global politics, with transformative changes in the Middle East, China and elsewhere that sources say could blunt the flow of international capital and have a chilling effect on real estate investment worldwide.